Boot or shoe polishing machine



-.3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

'(No Model.)

B. O.BIOKNELL. BOOT 0R SHOE POLISHING MACHINE.

Patented Sept. 18, 1894.

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No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

E. O. BIGKNELL. I

BOOT 0R SHOE POLISHING MACHINE.

No. 526,361. Patented Sept. 18,1894.

Q uni-a UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EMERY O. BIOKNELL, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

BOOT OR SHOE POLISHING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 526,361, datedSeptember 18, 1894..

Application filed August 19, 1892- Serial No. 4 -3,475'. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EMERY 0. BICKNELL, of Boston, in the county ofSuffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Boot or Shoe Pollshing Machines, of which the followingis a specification.

My invention has relation to boot and shoe polishing machines of thekind adapted to be set in operation by the dropping of a coin Into areceptacle for the release of the looking mechanism.

It is the object of my invention to provide such improvements as willgreatly simplify the mechanism of automatic boot and shoe polishingcontrivances, and render the same practical in a high degree.

It is also the object of my invention to so organize machines of thekind mentioned as that they may be made to operate upon a boot or shoefor as long atime and upon such parts as the necessities of particularcases may demand, or may be desired.

It is also the object of my invention to provide other improvements ofgreater or less importance, as will more fully appear from thedescription given and claims made hereinafter.

Reference is to be had to the annexed drawings and to the letters markedthereon, forming a part of this specification, the same lettersdesignating the same parts or features, as the case may be, whereverthey occur.

Of the drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved boot andshoe polishing machine, complete. Fig. 2 is atop plan View of the same.Fig. 3 isa longitudinal sectional View taken through the center of oneof the groups of polishing devices. Fig. 4 isatransverse sectional Viewof the same.

In the drawings a designates the frame of the machine which may be ofiron or any other material suited to support the various parts.

b designates an electric motor of suitable character, on the drivingshaft of which there is secured a pinion c which meshes with andoperates a gear 61 on the main shaft 6.

f f are gears on the main shaft which engage and drive gears gg securedto shafts which carry the toe brushes h h, and t is a gear, also securedto the main shaft, which meshes with a like gear j which is secured tothe shaft which carries the cloth slicking or polishing roll 7t. One ofthe gears f upon one side of the machine meshes with an idler Z which,in turn engages a gear m upon one of the side-brush shafts 'n, the otherside-brush shaft being driven through the medium of 1 an idle pinion oengaging a gear m similar to the gear m, the gear m being fast upon therear side-brush shaft.

19 is an idle gear engaged by the gear m and meshing with and drivingthe gear q fast on the shaft which carries the heel brushes r r.

38 are platforms or rests upon which the booted foot of the user of thedevice may be placed in order to secure the blacking and polishing ofthe boots or shoes to be acted upon.

In the construction of my machine I have contemplated the use of acarriage upon which the foot may rest while the boot orshoe thereon isundergoing the operation of polishing, which carriage may beautomatically operated, or moved in accordance with the volition of theuser of the machine. As the invention is herein shown, however, it isdesigned that the booted foot shall be moved back and forth at will onthe rest 8 which may be polished or made quite smooth for that purpose.I

The letters t designate the side brushes, that is, the brushes designedto polish the sides of the boot or shoe, there being two brushes forthis purpose on each side of each foot rest 8. Each brusht with itssupporting frame u is of quadrantal or nearly quadrantal form, and eachframe to which is of V shape is secured to one of the shafts n.Extending between the arms of each V-shaped frame is a rod 12 the endsof which are connected with the said frame, and mounted upon the saidrods so as to turn thereon are the said brushes t, springs to connectedwith the said rods hearing upon the brushes on both sides of theirsupports, in order that the brushes may be yieldingly pressed inwardtoward the foot rests or supports 8 in order to accommodate ICOdeparting from the spirit or scope of the invention.

The dotted lines a: in Fig. 3 indicate the circle described by the outeredges of the brushes t and the point lettered 00 indicates the line atwhich the paths of movementof the two brushes on eachside of each footrest 8 intersect in their operation upon a boot, which line is, inpractice, about two inches above the upper surface of the foot rests,and so are just sufficiently high to act upon the Vamps and quarters atthe sides of the boot or shoe Without reaching the leather forming theinstep portion of the shoe, or the elastic gore at the sides. Thisoperation will be readily understood upon referring to Fig. 1 andsupposing that the pinion 0 is revolving to the right, therefore causingthe two brushes t, t, to move to the left simultaneously. The left handbrush moves to the left and downwardly and so away from interferencewith the left and downward movement of the right hand brush. The sameremoval of one brush from the position where it might interfere with theother occurs when both brushes are in their lowermost positions.

By making the side-brusheszf in the form ofa substantial quadrant theymay be operatedin a rotary manner, and yet with the effect ofhand-polishing--that is, they may be made to act intermittingly upon aparticular surface.

The toe-brushes h and heel-brushes r are hollowed at their centers, asshown, in order that they may conform to the surfaces to be acted upon.

z designates a spring seat upon which it is designed the person whoseboots or shoes to be treated shall sit. The spring character of thesupport for the seat may be an air cushion a', so contrived and arrangedas that when a coin is dropped in a slot b (shown in dotted lines inFig. 2) said coin may release the looking mechanism, set the motor inoperation, and allow the seat 2 to gradually settle as the air slowlyescapes from the cushion a. As the seat is depressed it slowlylowers therod 0' connected therewith and gradually moves the lever 61' of theresistance-box, thus gradually turning the power on the machine.

6 e designate troughs containing the blacking or polish for the sidebrushes t, in which blacking are immersed the stones or similar devicesf, hung upon the inner ends of levers g which levers are fulcrumed at hand are connected at their outer ends with a cross rod '5', connected atits middle with the lower end of the vertical rod 0', so that as thelatter is depressed it will operate the levers g to raise the stones fand thus supply blacking or polish to the brushes t.

j j designate blacking troughs inclinedly arranged at the forward partof the machine, adjacent to the toe brushes h, in which troughs,immersed in blacking or polish therein arethe stones Z0 lo hung on theinner ends of levers Z Z connected at their outer ends with the outerends of levers n"'n"the inner ends of which are connected with the innerends of the levers g, so that the stones it will be moved out of theirtroughs to supply blacking to the toe-brushes simultaneously with theraising of the stonesf as before described.

O O designate cylindrical stones arranged below the heel-brushes r anddesigned to supply blacking or polish thereto from the troughs p 10' inwhich they rest with their upper surfaces in contact with said brushes7'. On the outer ends of the shafts of the stones 0' 0 are ratchetwheels q g which are adapted to be operated upon by pawls connected withthe upper ends of the vertical rods r r, the lower ends of which arepivotally connected with the levers g, so that when the outer ends ofsaid levers are depressed, a substantially one-half turn may be impartedto the stones 0.

The operation of my machine may be briefly described as follows: Theperson whose shoes are to be polished may sit down upon the seat ,2,placing his feet upon the rests s, and dropping a coin into the slot 1)which will effect a release of the locking mechanism and allow the saidseat to be slowly depressed, gradually starting the machine, and in likemanner raising the blacking stones to supply blacking or polish to thebrushes, the stones being coated with blacking or polish of suitableconsistency which is wiped or licked off'by the brushes, and by thelatter applied to the boots and shoes. The person upon the seat may nowmove his feet to and fro, according to will, and as the brushes trevolve they will first clean and supply blacking to the boot, and,after the stones have become freed from the blacking liquid polish thesame. Then, thrusting the toe under the toe-brush, the forward end andtop or instep of the boot may be blacked and polishedin like manner. Theheel of each boot or shoe may next be drawn back up the incline s, (seeFig. 3,) into contact with the brush r and in this way the rear of theheel may be likewise blacked and polished. The boot may finally beplaced on the rest t and the forward part thrust under the clothpolishing or slicking rolland burnished.

It will be understood that while I have shown means whereby the boots orshoes on both feet may be polished at the same time, I may employ asingle boot polishing means, and I may also dispense with the slickingor burnishing roll without departing from the nature or spirit of theinvention.

While I have shown and described a construction adapted to be set inoperation by the use of a coin, the coin-controlling means are notherein represented or claimed, it being my purpose to make the same thesubject of a separate application.

Having described the nature of my invention and explained a way ofconstructing and using the same, though without attempting to set forthall the forms in which it may be made or all of its modes of,employment, I declare that what I claim is--- 1. The machine forpolishing boots and shoes comprising in its construction an electricmotor, movable blacking and polishing brushes operated by the saidmotor, a lever for turning on the electric current, a gradually yieldingseat connection between the latter and the seat lever for graduallystarting the machine in operation and movable blacking carriersconnected withsaid lever for conveying blacking from the source ofsupply to the brushes, for the purpose set forth.

2. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in itsconstruction moving polishing brushes, polishing or blackingreceptacles. movable stones in said receptacles adapted to be raised tosupply polishing substance to the brushes, and a yielding seat andconnections between the same and the said stones, whereby when the seatis depressed the stones may be raised, as set forth.

3. A machine for polishing boots and shoes, comprising in itsconstruction a foot rest or support, and rotary brushes mounted torevolve at the sides of the support, each brush consisting of a flatsegmental support projecting from one side of the shaft and providedwith brushing material on the inner sides thereof, substantially asdescribed.

4. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in itsconstruction a foot rest or support, a plurality of rotary brushes andframes mounted to revolve upon both sides of the support, each brushconsisting of a flat segmental support projecting from one side of theshaft and provided with brushing material on the inner side thereof,each support being hingedly and yieldingly supported in the rotaryframe, substantially as descnbed.

5. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in itsconstruction a smooth foot rest, the movable side toe and heel brushes,and the inclined heel support 8, as set forth.

6. A machine for polishing boots and shoes comprising in itsconstruction movable brushes for effecting the polishing, mechanism formoving the brushes, and a yielding seat connected with said mechanism,the construction and arrangement being such that the depression of theseat will set in operation the said mechanism, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specificatiomin thepresence of two subscribing witnesses, this 13th day of August, A. D.1892.

EMERY O. BICKNELL. Witnesses:

ARTHUR W. CROSSLEY, WALTER S. MGLEOD.

